Chrysanthemum plant named ‘Vigorelli Violet’

ABSTRACT

A new and distinct cultivar of  Chrysanthemum  plant named ‘Vigorelli Violet’, characterized by its upright, outwardly spreading and rounded plant habit; vigorous growth habit; freely branching habit; dense and full plant habit; uniform and freely flowering habit; decorative-type inflorescences with dark red purple-colored ray florets that become lighter red purple with development giving a bi-colored appearance; and excellent garden performance.

Botanical designation: Chrysanthemum×morifolium.

Cultivar denomination: ‘VIGORELLI VIOLET’.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Chrysanthemum plant, botanically known as Chrysanthemum×morifolium, and hereinafter referred to by the name ‘Vigorelli Violet’.

The new Chrysanthemum plant is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in Oostnieuwkerke, Belgium. The objective of the breeding program is to create new freely flowering Chrysanthemum plants with unique and attractive ray floret coloration.

The new Chrysanthemum plant originated from a cross-pollination made by the Inventor in Oostnieuwkerke, Belgium in September, 2005 of Chrysanthemum×morifolium ‘Dolo’, not patented, as the female, or seed, parent with Chrysanthemum×morifolium ‘Marenco Purple’, not patented. The new Chrysanthemum plant was discovered and selected by the Inventor as a flowering plant from within the progeny of the stated cross-pollination in a controlled greenhouse environment in Oostnieuwkerke, Belgium in September, 2006.

Asexual reproduction of the new Chrysanthemum plant by vegetative cuttings was first conducted in a controlled greenhouse environment in Oostnieuwkerke, Belgium in January, 2007. Asexual reproduction by cuttings has shown that the unique features of this new Chrysanthemum plant are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Plants of the new Chrysanthemum have not been observed under all possible environmental conditions and cultural conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in environmental conditions such as temperature, daylength and light intensity, without, however, any variance in genotype.

The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of ‘Vigorelli Violet’. These characteristics in combination distinguish ‘Vigorelli Violet’ as a new and distinct Chrysanthemum plant:

-   -   1. Upright, outwardly spreading and rounded plant habit;         vigorous growth habit.     -   2. Freely branching habit; dense and full plant habit.     -   3. Uniform and freely flowering habit.     -   4. Decorative-type inflorescences with dark red purple-colored         ray florets that become lighter red purple with development         giving a bi-colored appearance.     -   5. Excellent garden performance.

Plants of the new Chrysanthemum differ primarily from the female parent, ‘Dolo’, in the following characteristics:

-   -   1. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum are more vigorous than plants         of ‘Dolo’.     -   2. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum have larger inflorescences         than plants of ‘Dolo’.     -   3. Ray florets of plants of the new Chrysanthemum are darker in         color than ray florets of plants of ‘Dolo’.

Plants of the new Chrysanthemum differ primarily from the male parent, ‘Marenco Purple’, in the following characteristics:

-   -   1. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum are more vigorous than plants         of ‘Marenco Purple’.     -   2. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum have larger leaves than         plants of ‘Marenco Purple’.     -   3. Fully opened ray florets of plants of the new Chrysanthemum         are lighter in color than fully opened ray florets of plants of         ‘Dolo’.

Plants of the new Chrysanthemum can also be compared to plants of Chrysanthemum×morifolium ‘Amora Pink’, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 23,467. In side-by-side comparisons conducted in Oostnieuwkerke, Belgium, plants of the new Chrysanthemum differed from plants of ‘Amora Pink’ in the following characteristics:

-   -   1. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum were more vigorous than         plants of ‘Amora Pink’.     -   2. Plants of the new Chrysanthemum were more uniformly spherical         than plants of ‘Amora Pink’.     -   3. Ray florets of plants of the new Chrysanthemum were more         intense in color than ray florets of plants of ‘Amora Pink’.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PHOTOGRAPH

The accompanying photograph illustrates the overall appearance of the new Chrysanthemum plant showing the colors as true as it is reasonably possible to obtain in colored reproductions of this type. Colors in the photograph may differ slightly from the color values cited in the detailed botanical description which accurately describe the colors of the new Chrysanthemum plant.

The photograph comprises a side perspective view of a typical flowering plant of ‘Vigorelli Violet’ grown in a container.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The aforementioned photograph and following observations and measurements describe plants grown in 19-cm containers during the autumn in an outdoor nursery in Oostnieuwkerke, Belgium and under cultural practices which approximate those generally used in commercial Chrysanthemum production. During the production of the plants, day temperatures ranged from 25° C. to 30° C. and night temperatures ranged from 15° C. to 20° C. Plants were 20 weeks old when the photograph and detailed description were taken. In the following description, color references are made to The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart, 2005 Edition, except where general terms of ordinary dictionary significance are used.

-   Botanical classification: Chrysanthemum×morifolium ‘Vigorelli     Violet’. -   Parentage:     -   -   Female, or seed, parent.—Chrysanthemum×morifolium ‘Dolo’,             not patented.         -   Male, or pollen, parent.—Chrysanthemum×morifolium ‘Marenco             Purple’, not patented. -   Propagation:     -   -   Type.—Terminal vegetative cuttings.         -   Time to initiate roots, summer.—About 14 days at             temperatures of about 20° C.         -   Time to initiate roots, winter.—About 20 days at             temperatures of about 20° C.         -   Time to produce a rooted young plant, summer.—About 30 days             at temperatures of about 20° C.         -   Time to produce a rooted young plant, winter.—About 40 days             at temperatures of about 20° C.         -   Root description.—Fine, fibrous; light brown in color.         -   Rooting habit.—Freely branching; medium density. -   Plant description:     -   -   Appearance.—Perennial decorative-type Chrysanthemum; stems             upright and outwardly spreading giving a uniformly rounded             appearance to the plant; plants roughly spherical; very             freely branching habit, about 25 primary lateral branches             develop, each primary lateral branch with multiple secondary             branches; pinching enhances lateral branch development;             dense and full plant habit; vigorous growth habit; plants             flexible, not brittle.         -   Plant height.—About 50 cm.         -   Plant width.—About 65 cm.         -   Lateral branches.—Length: About 25 cm. Diameter: About 2 mm             to 3 mm. Internode length: About 2 cm to 2.5 cm. Strength:             Strong, flexible. Texture: Pubescent; longitudinally ridged.             Color: Close to 144A.         -   Leaves.—Arrangement: Alternate, simple. Length: About 5.5 cm             to 7 cm. Width: About 3.5 cm to 4 cm. Apex: Rounded to             cuspidate. Base: Attenuate. Margin: Palmately lobed and             serrate, sinuses between lateral lobes divergent to             parallel. Texture, upper and lower surfaces: Slightly             pubescent. Color: Developing and fully expanded leaves,             upper surface: Close to 136A; venation, close to 148C.             Developing and fully expanded leaves, lower surface: Close             to 137A; venation, close to 147B to 147C. Petiole: Length:             About 1 cm. Diameter: About 2 mm. Texture, upper and lower             surfaces: Slightly pubescent and rough. Color, upper             surface: Close to 146C. Color, lower surface: Close to 146D. -   Inflorescence description:     -   -   Appearance.—Decorative inflorescence form; inflorescences             borne on terminals above foliar plane; disc and ray florets             arranged acropetally on a capitulum.         -   Fragrance.—Slightly fragrant, pungent.         -   Flowering response.—Under natural season conditions, plants             flower in mid-October in Belgium; flowering response time,             about 47 days.         -   Postproduction longevity.—Inflorescences maintain good color             and substance for about five weeks in an outdoor nursery;             inflorescences persistent.         -   Quantity of inflorescences.—About 20 inflorescences develop             per lateral branch.         -   Inflorescence bud.—Height: About 5 mm. Diameter: About 8 mm.             Shape: Globular. Color: Close to 144A and 137C.         -   Inflorescence size.—Diameter: About 5 cm to 5.5 cm. Depth             (height): About 4 cm. Disc diameter: About 1 mm. Receptacle             diameter: About 3 mm. Receptacle height: About 2.5 mm to             3 mm. Receptacle color: Close to 144B.         -   Ray florets.—Length: About 3 cm to 4 cm. Width: About 6 mm.             Shape: Oval. Apex: Rounded. Base: Attenuate. Margin: Entire.             Aspect: Mostly flat. Texture, upper and lower surfaces:             Smooth, glabrous. Number of ray florets per inflorescence:             About 200 arranged in about ten whorls. Color: When opening,             upper surface: Close to 59A. When opening, lower surface:             Close to 59B. Fully opened, upper surface: Close to 72B;             color becoming closer to N74C with development. Fully             opened, lower surface: Close to 70B; color becoming closer             to N80D with development.         -   Disc florets.—Length: About 3 mm. Diameter: About 0.5 mm to             1 mm. Shape: Tubular, elongated; apices acute. Number of             disc florets per inflorescence: About 20 massed at the             center of the inflorescence. Color: Apex: Close to 144C.             Mid-section: Close to 5B. Base: Close to 145D.         -   Phyllaries.—Number of phyllaries per inflorescence: About 25             arranged in two or three whorls. Length: About 4 mm to 6 mm.             Width: About 2 mm to 3 mm. Shape: Ovate. Apex: Rounded.             Base: Rounded to truncate. Margin: Entire. Texture, upper             and lower surfaces: Smooth, glabrous. Color, upper surface:             Close to 137A. Color, lower surface: Close to N137B.         -   Peduncles.—Length, terminal peduncle: About 4 cm. Length,             fourth peduncle: About 6 cm. Length, seventh peduncle: About             8 cm. Diameter: About 2 mm. Angle: About 30° from vertical.             Strength: Moderately strong. Texture: Slightly pubescent.             Color: Close to 146B.         -   Reproductive organs.—Androecium: Not observed. Gynoecium:             Not observed.         -   Seeds and fruits.—Seed and fruit production have not been             observed on plants of the new Chrysanthemum. -   Disease & pest resistance: Resistance to pathogens and pests common     to Chrysanthemums has not been observed on plants grown under     commercial conditions. -   Garden performance: Plants of the new Chrysanthemum have     demonstrated excellent garden performance and will tolerate     temperatures ranging from about 0° C. to about 45° C. 

It is claimed:
 1. A new and distinct Chrysanthemum plant named ‘Vigorelli Violet’ as illustrated and described. 